Non Western Blog

The New Kingdom Of Egypt  (1550-1069 BC)

Tomb of Tutankhamun by Unknown 

The Tomb of Tutankhamun was built by unknown workmen in a village near by but Tutankhamun commissioned his own tomb in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Tutankhamun became king around eight years old and ruled from 1332 to 1323 BC. Tutankhamun's greatest accomplishment was restoring Egypt's traditional polytheistic religion. He died around 1323 BC at the age of 18 from many health issues and possible broken bones. When scanning Tutankhamun's body, they found that he had a broken leg, possibly from a chariot accident. He also had scoliosis, a clubfoot, and a severe bone disease which means he was probably in poor health for most of his life. Tutankhamun's tomb also known as KV 62, was discovered in 1922 by a man named Howard Carter. It had been in the Valley of Kings, hidden, for over 3,000 years. It was in good condition which was not like most of the other tombs found. The tomb contained nearly five thousand artifacts and Tutankhamun's body was well preserved. In Tutankhmun's tomb was this ancient egyptian art of Tutankhamun's transition to the afterlife. Each wall has something different, for example, the north wall had art of Ay performing the Open of the Mouth ritual on Tutankhamun's mummy and Tutankhamun is greeted by the gods, Nut and Osiris. While the west wall had a mural of twelve baboons, which represents twelve hours of darkness that Tutankhamun had to pass through before reaching the afterlife.  I chose this work because it has always fascinated me how someone could create artwork like this in 1323 BC. It's so beautiful and unique the way they incorporate different colors of blue, white, and black. Sometimes makes me wonder what they made paint of there. These pictures of his afterlife were hand carved and hand painted which must have taken a lot of time for all the sharp, detailed lines. It truly inspires awe compared to the art we see today because of how vastly different they are, for example, these paintings are in 2D not 3D.

Statue of Ramses II by Unknown

The Statue of Ramses II was created by an unknown person or people. It was created between 1279-1254 BCE as Ramses II had ruled for 66 years, from 1279 - 1213 BCE. Ramses II was one of the longest and richest reigning pharaohs of ancient Egypt. He had increased his country's wealth and territory, built numerous monuments like the temple of Abu Simbel and created many self portraits of himself. One portrait sculpture was The Statue Of Ramses II, which represents his legacy and ancient Egyptian art. The Statue of Ramses II was carved out of a single block of granodiorite and is over life-sized, standing at 196 cm tall. It presents Ramses II wearing a headdress, sandals, tunic, and broad necklace while holding a scepter in his right hand. This sculpture is meant to be viewed from the front as Ramses II controls his viewer's gaze, therefore reminding the viewer of his control. The statue exudes royal authority.  The Statue of Ramses II was made with much detail through fine lines that represent different meanings towards who Ramses II was. For example, the royal headdress is called a khepresh which is known as a war crown as it signifies the wearer's military prowess. Another example is the tunic, which is a transparent pleated garment that is made of linen, highlighting the king's body, arms, chest, and shoulders. At the bottom of the statue, towards his legs, is two small figures who are Queen Nefertari which was the king's wife and Amunherkhepeshef which is the king's son. He had included them because they were of great importance to him and his kingdom. I believe this statue inspires great awe as it was built from a single block of granodiorite and is over life-sized. It depicts the kind of pharaoh Ramses II was and represents how strong and important he was to his people. Whoever built this statue took great time to carve out the details and to make Ramses II look his best, furthermore showing how great of a pharaoh Ramses II was to his people and how they had hoped to be lead into such success as Ramses II did. 

Temple of Abu Simbel by Unknown

The Temple of Abu Simbel was built by an unknown person or people but was commissioned by Ramses II. Ramses had this great temple built between 1264-1244BC to demonstrate his power and his divine nature. These statues were also built to honor his wife, Nefertari as a deified queen. The temple itself was dedicated to the sun gods Amon-Re and Re-Horakhte. The temple was precisely oriented so that twice a year, on February 21st and October 21st, the sun's rays penetrate deep into the sanctuary, illuminating the statues of the gods inside. There are four colossal statues of him that sit at the entrance, standing sixty-five feet tall with halls that extend one hundred and eighty-five feet long. There are sculptures inside to commemorate Ramses II's heroic leadership at the Battle of Kadesh. In 1813, the temple had been covered by sand dunes but was discovered by Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. To prevent from ruther ruin by flooding, in 1967 the temple was relocated. They cut the large rock carefully into blocks and reassembled higher and further back from the river. This was one of the greatest challenges for archaeological engineering in history. This temple was a remarkable feat of ancient Egyptian engineering and artistry. This temple really brings me feelings of pure awe. It is hard for me to believe that someone could have created these defined statues and temple along with how tall they are. The detailed texture and color of the sandy mountain, it was carved on the side of, is fascinating. It clearly shows how important Ramses was as a pharaoh, ruling in Nubia, as it took twenty years to finish. I would love to be able to go see these statues in person one day. It is one of Egypt's Seven Wonders. 

Work Cited 

"“Abu Simbel.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., https://www.britannica.com/place/Abu-Simbel."

"“Tomb of Tutankhamun.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 5 Nov. 2024, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomb_of_Tutankhamun."

"“Ramesses II.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 16 Nov. 2024,  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramesses_II."